[CAUT] The demise of the American piano industry (William Monroe)

Andrew Anderson andrew at andersonmusic.com
Sun Aug 5 07:15:15 MDT 2012


Same felt with Euro voicing, less needle punctures.   I prefer to voice at destination and prefer voicing down with the needle rather than having to voice up with hardeners.

Andrew Anderson

On Aug 4, 2012, at 8:36 PM, Dale Erwin wrote:

> 
> From: erwinspiano at aol.com>
> 
> 
> Something I can almost agree with you on. The soft or less hard hammer is not lost. It lives on in all my work and is still made at Ronsen piano hammer in the Catskills just in case you missed that.
> Dale
> 
>  Brent Fischer wrote:
> Yes, so is this the felt that Andrew Anderson is getting when he
> orders " Euro voicing "  instead of  the " American "  with the Abel Naturals?
> 
> Brent
> 
> From: erwinspiano 
> Sent: Sat, Aug 4, 2012 3:14 pm
> Subject: Re: [CAUT] The demise of the American piano industry (William Monroe)
> 
> 
> No, not the same felt. I don,t know what the Abel felt is and they tend to keep those things a secret. 
> 
> Ronsen piano hammer co. and Renner usa/Renner Germany have exclusive Weickert special feltl distribution rights currently, as Rick Baldassin, Ray Negron and myself worked on and contirbuted as collegues several years to the R & D for Jack Brand. Jack is the owner of the Wurzen felt co. In Germany, formerly the J.D.Weickert co. 
> 
>  Jack is a felt master,wizard,guru and the world of piano techs. at large don,t have any idea how fortunate we are to have some one like him developing fantastic products for us...yet.
>  The Weickert special felt has a distinctive marker in the felt in the bass end hammers.
>  It is a solitary gray or black semi circle. This way,  no secrets, you know what your getting. 
> 
>     The Ronsen  Weickert and Renner blue point Weickert felt products are in my opinion complimentary products.
> 
>  I suspect one of the felts Abel uses is the Wurzen AA felt, another hammer Wurzen product. This is also marked but, by two grayish circles.
> 
> The source of the  Abel  "Natural felt" is a closely gaurded secret.
>  The Abels are great people and fierce competitors. IMO they are currently running to catch up as well as keep a market edge. 
>  Its wonderful to have so many choices in hammers. I have been pounding the drum about how horrible hard hammers are for 25 years now and finally manufacturers are listening and producing what we want and what musicians have been searching for.
> Its a great time to be a piano tech.
> 
> Dale
> Whistling a happy tune
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> From: Dale Erwin <erwinspiano at aol.com>
> To: brent.fischer at yahoo.com 
> Sent: Saturday, August 4, 2012 9:18 AM
> Subject: Re: [CAUT] The demise of the American piano industry (William Monroe)
> 
>  Hi Brent
>  You have heard of the re-introduced Weickert felt?  Ray Negron/Ronsen & I  helped re-introduce it thru R&D for Jack Brand/Wurzen felt Germany,...right?  So many pianos American and European alike used this felt made by the Legendary J.D Weickert felt company from its inception to approx 1940/WW-2 when the factory was closed. Brent I believe it was this felt that was responsible and played a very large role in the tonal envelope of the times prior to WW-2.
>  I installed the first set in an older 6 ft Kawai about 5 years ago. Instant music/sustain/no needling Its been an amazing tonal journey and a relief to have the tonal pendulum swinging in the other direction again after such a painful hiatus.
> 
> Dale
> 
> Dale Erwin R.P.T.
> Erwin's Piano Restoration Inc.
> Mason & Hamlin/Steinway/U.S. pianos
> www.Erwinspiano.com
> Phone: 209-577-8397
> 
>  
>   
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Brent Fischer <brent.fischer at yahoo.com>
> To: erwinspiano <erwinspiano at aol.com>
> Sent: Fri, Aug 3, 2012 4:34 pm
> Subject: Re: [CAUT] The demise of the American piano industry (William Monroe)
> 
> we're getting closer  than we've been in awhile,  huh?  
> My first Ronsen set was maybe.....1981
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1
> 
> Brent Fischer <brent.fischer at yahoo.com> wrote:
> Dear Ann,
> 
>       Thankyou for your perspective.  You couldn't be closer to the truth.
> They were perfect.  Don't you think that in an artistic sense, the demise of  
> global tone quality was the demise created with the loss of the soft hammer?
> I think your call to arms is admirable.  You can be proud of that.
>       
>       Sincerely,
> 
>       Brent Fischer
> 
>      
> 
> 
> From: Anne Acker <a.acker at comcast.net>
> To: caut at ptg.org 
> Sent: Friday, August 3, 2012 10:11 AM
> Subject: Re: [CAUT] The demise of the American piano industry (William Monroe)
> 
> I like this Adopt-a Piano idea. We'd have to encourage technicians to assist in moving the instruments about. 
> 
> Just yesterday I tuned a beautiful ca. 1900 Bechstein upright that I had restored for a local woman four years ago. It had been in her family since it was new, and was so full of memories. I had forgotten what a fantastic sounding and playing instrument it is, and beautiful.  I get so tired of black black boring 'modern' (i.e. 1940s design with which we are still stuck!) She adores it. Quality instruments are definitely worth restoring. Dollar value isn't everything.
> 
> AA
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Anne Acker
> Historic Keyboard Specialist
> Anne Acker Early Keyboards
> http://www.anneackerkeyboards.com
> http://www.pianogrands.com
> 
> mobile 912-704-3048
> 
> From: "Euphonious Thumpe" <lclgcnp at yahoo.com>
> To: caut at ptg.org
> Sent: Friday, August 3, 2012 5:13:40 AM
> Subject: Re: [CAUT] The demise of the American piano industry (William        Monroe)
> 
> Thanks, Israel!
> I agree that it would be of benefit to humanity if all of those horrible little, poorly made "pianos" went to the dump. They, in a very negative manner, redefined in the minds of several generations what a piano is supposed to sound like, and helped bring down the overall Art of Music in this country. (That, along with the short-sighted ASCAP strike of 1941.) The sad thing to me though, is that with them go plenty of truly resonant instruments who, by no fault of their own, sound generally as bad at this point due to simple wear and tear from loving use: Stieffs, Conovers, Ivers and Ponds, etc.; pianos that could "blow the doors off" most modern-day instruments, if properly restored--- because the "general public" does not know the difference. (While continuing to bow before Steinway, largely because it believes that it is supposed to.) 
> If people harboring a raunchy little spinet could be convinced to "adopt" one of these magnificent beasts, and excise that puny sonic tumor sitting in their den in exchange for it, many could be preserved for possible future fixing. (Perhaps Guild members could pool their funds for a full-page ad in the TIMES, extolling the potential musical virtues of these beautifully-crafted, vintage American instruments, and denouncing their needless destruction?* While bringing greater attention to the "Adopt-a Piano" programs, and other means of interim preservation?)
> 
> Thumpe
> 
> *But mouse-infested ones, sadly, gotta go, IMHO!
> 
> 
> From: erwinspiano <erwinspiano at aol.com>; 
> To: <caut at ptg.org>; 
> Subject: Re: [CAUT] The demise of the American piano industry (William Monroe) 
> Sent: Fri, Aug 3, 2012 4:30:14 AM 
> 
> Hi Israel
> Really good post. Quite a journey you,ve been on. Fwiw Hamburg rims or some have been made of maple acquired from the N.Y factory. In 1996 I was on a tour with Michael mohr at the factory and he pointed to stacks of maple being readied to ship to Hamburg.
> 
> Never the less the two factories produce very different instruments.
> Dale
> 
> 
> Sent from my Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1
> 
> Israel Stein <custos3 at comcast.net> wrote:
> Hi, William
> 
> Lest this post be misconstrued, I do 
> believe - like you - that Steinway still 
> makes a pretty darn good  - occasionally 
> great - piano, but improvements in 
> quality control would be very welcome... 
> And your well thought out remarks remind 
> me of something I heard Eric Schandall 
> say on several occasions, back when - 
> besides being a Steinway C & A 
> technician in New York - he was running 
> the Steinway Academy and doing lots of 
> presentations on behalf of Steinway all 
> over the country. One of his points was 
> that it would be a tremendous loss for 
> the world's musical culture if every 
> piano sounded like a Steinway. According 
> to him, it is precisely the variety of 
> sonorities of different manufacturers' 
> pianos that enriches the music world, 
> and he was proud of working for one of 
> those manufacturers. He would also make 
> the point that Europe and North America 
> have very different ideas of constitutes 
> the ideal piano sound - and trying to 
> compare the two in terms of which is 
> "better" is nonsense. In North America 
> the richer, deeper darker and fuller 
> sound - like of a good New York Steinway 
> (at least what it used to be - many 
> pianists complain that it is hard to 
> find these days) - prevails, while in 
> Europe the ideal is a crisper, brighter, 
> more transparent tone. The Hamburg 
> Steinway, by the way (according to Eric) 
> was built to suit the European taste, so 
> any claim that the Hamburg Steinway is 
> an "American" piano is based on 
> ignorance. The Hamburg rims are made 
> from local woods - hornbeam - and not 
> rock maple, which only grows in North 
> America. And the hammers are the much 
> denser European style hammers.
> 
> And as far as quality and workmanship is 
> concerned, I can cite numerous instances 
> of substandard Steinways - both New York 
> and Hamburg - from my years of prepping 
> them, first at the Boston dealership, 
> then at three different stores of the 
> San Francisco Bay area dealership. Heck, 
> in my first year at Boston's Steinert 
> store, we sent back 6 Steinway grands of 
> various sizes. The president of the 
> company had me document some of the 
> problems photographically - at one point 
> he got really upset and said something 
> like "what are they doing - trying to 
> put me out of business?" Some of the 
> problems I remember were: horrendous 
> bridgepin positions (really sloppy - no 
> side bearing in some cases), downbearing 
> issues, poor choice of soundboard panels 
> (really poor grain), horrendous action 
> geometry - this on a Steinway D!!!  
> Harvard University purchased that D - it 
> really was a nice sounding piano - but 
> their technician insisted on extensive 
> modifications to the action (which we 
> did in the store shop - and billed 
> Steinway for the time).
> 
> Right around that time, Boston's 
> Symphony Hall had for a house Steinway a 
> Hamburg "D" - which was not able to 
> project over an orchestra. I remember 
> Daniel Barenboim in a performance of the 
> two Brahms concerti trying his best to 
> pull some more sound out of that dog - 
> with Seji Ozawa really trying to hush 
> the orchestra as much as possible - and 
> the piano was still inaudible! Some 
> artists refused to play on it - Emmanuel 
> Ax and Alfred Brendel come to mind - and 
> brought in a Steinway C & A instrument 
> instead (we had them at the store) 
> paying for transport and tuning out of 
> their own funds. Then, in my 3-4 years 
> at the San Francisco dealership, I came 
> across numerous B's with dead trebles 
> (it seemed to be epidemic about 10 years 
> ago) and there was a horrendous sounding 
> "M" that sat at the Walnut Creek store 
> for three years (no amount of voicing 
> made much difference) before someone - 
> probably an interior decorator (it was a 
> "fancy case" model) - bought it...
> 
> Currently at San Francisco State 
> University we have a Hamburg D with a 
> dead bass (some knucklehead department 
> chair ordered it sight unseen and 
> untried - after all, it's a Hamburg 
> Steinway, so anything we get has to be 
> great - right?) According to the records 
> left by the previous technician, he 
> struggled for years trying to get more 
> sound out of that bass. We (there's two 
> of us working here) replaced the hammers 
> on it a few years ago, and even had a 
> Hamburg factory-trained consultant help 
> with the voicing. Bass is still dead. So 
> a performer either has to tone down 
> everything - or bash away at the bass 
> trying to make it match a "full 
> throttle" performance, and listen to it 
> "blow up on a FFF" (yes, I heard it 
> myself - so here goes another specious 
> claim, Steinways do "blow up on a FFF").
> 
> So as William writes, Steinway does make 
> a possibly great instrument - but it 
> often takes an awful lot of work to get 
> it to its full potential. And way too 
> often, even with lots of work, the 
> result leaves a lot to be desired... 
> And, by the way, Larry Fine does not 
> make his claims on the basis of his own 
> observations - he gets feedback from a 
> large number of skilled technicians all 
> over the US and Canada, who report to 
> him their observations. And if all the 
> people who are having apoplexy over what 
> Larry was quoted on in the Times re-read 
> his words carefully, they might see that 
> he was describing the mindset of 
> potential piano buyers that is 
> contributing to the destruction of old 
> pianos - not making a recommendation. 
> There is no point hiding your heads in 
> the sand, folks - that is the reality in 
> the low end of today's piano 
> marketplace. Those buyers who would be 
> happy with a cheap, mediocre acoustic 
> piano would very often be just as happy 
> with an electronic. The acoustic piano 
> business is migrating up-market - where 
> users can actually appreciate the 
> difference between acoustic and 
> electronic. So if you want to stay in 
> business, do whatever it takes to get 
> yourself into that sector. And 
> personally, I wouldn't mind seeing all 
> those old Wurlitzers and Aeolians and 
> Kimballs and spinets of every ilk go off 
> the end of a mover's truck - they are 
> the everlasting shame of the American 
> piano industry and, according to many, 
> in a large part responsible for its demise.
> 
> And as far as our original poster's 
> judgement of piano quality - well, 
> besides sounding an awful lot like a 
> sales pitch, it presumes that "bigger is 
> better". Not every performance is given 
> in and Avery Fisher sized hall, and in 
> many musical contexts what is desirable 
> is the ability to blend into an ensemble 
> - not to project. Then again, only a 
> small minority of pianos sold are meant 
> for performance - and many of those 
> meant for performance will be used in 
> intimate surroundings where the "ability 
> to project" is not really a 
> consideration (as it isn't in most home 
> and studio pianos.) So our original 
> poster seems to be suffering from a bit 
> of tunnel vision here... I really hope 
> that his judgement as a baseball coach 
> is a lot better than his judgement of 
> pianos - or his team is in for a very 
> rough season...
> 
> Well, William, nice reading your clear 
> and well thought out prose again. We all 
> missed you in Seattle...
> 
> Israel Stein
> 
> 
> 
> >
> >
> > Hi Brent,
> >
> > All due respect, but this comment you've made outlines exactly why Steinway
> > is so successful, and other equal (or better) instruments are given the
> > nose to the air treatment.  You wrote:
> >
> > "My doubt stems from knowing that
> > Steinway rim construction, utilizing rock maple, is the
> > standard for instrument projection."
> >
> > The only people who "know" this to be true are those who "know" Steinway is
> > the best, or who "know" anything else in this world.  This "knowing" is
> > nothing more than prejudicial hyperbole.  It makes honest comparison
> > impossible.  I certainly don't "know" that maple is the best rim material.
> >   Perhaps I'm a fool.  I would also agree that as Mr Anderson states,  "personal
> > preference should determine your choice here."
> >
> > If you want your pianos to sound like a NY Steinway, then by all means
> > choose one.  However, if you have differing tonal ideas, your choice
> > doesn't instantly become lesser by virtue of it not being a Steinway.
> >   Neither does it mean that any of the long held Steinway marketing myths
> > are anything more than that.
> >
> > You wrote, " because there is simply no mistakes made in Steinway joinery,
> > including boards and bridges."  My experience is different here.  I've seen
> > plenty of mistakes on S&S boards and bridges (and braces).  It's not
> > perfect.  Don't get me wrong.  It doesn't make it awful, it just means it's
> > not always "the best."  There is room.
> >
> > You wrote, "Steinway makes the only piano that doesn't blow up on "FFF" and
> > selective artists know the difference and the sound. ."  And again, I would
> > say my experience is very different.  I've known many instrument makes
> > apart from Steinway whose pianos can go above and beyond Steinway.  And
> > while it may be true that artists "recognize" a particular tonal spectrum
> > associated with Steinway, it doesn't have to mean that palette is the only
> > desirable one.  Just because it has the name Steinway on it, I don't
> > personally feel that makes everything that it is desirable, or even OK in
> > some cases.
> >
> > Take Steinway's notorious duplex segments.  Zingers abound.  Some at S&S
> > will tell you how the artists actually like that.  When I was in NY at
> > Steinway, there was an interesting discussion involving Ron Connors and the
> > current folks in the Selection Room, whereby when the issue came up, the
> > pregnant pause spoke volumes about what SOME at S&S felt about that
> > particular "desirable" trait.
> >
> > Again, I would emphasize that I have nothing particularly against S&S.  I
> > like most of the S&S pianos I see.  But, I don't view them as the world
> > standard.  I view them as one of the available "Tier 1" pianos.  If an
> > artist truly desires what Steinway produces in tone and touch, then by all
> > means that should be the choice.  But if the decision to choose Steinway is
> > simply because, "well, it's a Steinway," I think that is a great tragedy.
> >
> > William R. Monroe
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > On Thu, Aug 2, 2012 at 9:42 AM, Brent Fischer <brent.fischer at yahoo.com>wrote:
> >
> >> hey Mr. Anderson,  I appreciate your civil discourse.  Mr.
> >> Erwin must have hit his head prior to his foolish  reply.
> >>
> >>     I'm a baseball coach so this has to be my final response
> >> for a little while.  I'm not discounting the merit of your
> >> ability to discern power differences,  I would just have to
> >> hear it for myself.  My doubt stems from knowing that
> >> Steinway rim construction, utilizing rock maple, is the
> >> standard for instrument projection.  If you're saying the Sauter
> >> utilizes a rim species of wood that is superior to maple I
> >> have difficulty believing it. If Sauter utilizes a keybed
> >> that accelerates resonance to the pianist without quartered
> >> spruce slats then I have to question how.
> >>
> >>     I was able to find a pic of the lyre you mentioned
> >> and although the assembly pieces appear to be of acceptable
> >> diameters the comment I made about Julliard has to do with
> >> the support system.  A steel rod bracing will always flex
> >> more due to the torque applied to the outer corners of the
> >> lyre box.  This is the main reason Steinway braces with birch
> >> sticks that are fit into the keybed.  Under rigorous demands
> >> the flexing becomes an issue and over time only worsens  and the
> >> pianist feels a sense of disconnection.  This is for the very same
> >> reason I use carbon fiber soles when cycling,  the rigidity of
> >> the shoe is critical when standing up on the pedals when engaging
> >> twelve percent climbs.
> >>
> >>     Last comment on Fine,  why would you imply on a national stage
> >> that digitals have the added advantage of not needing to be tuned.
> >> As if the trade wasn't suffering enough already, there just went thousands
> >> across the world including the technician's business card in their
> >> shredding
> >> pile for re-cycling.  At least we're going green on the way out.
> >>
> >>     Sincerely,
> >>
> >>     Brent Fischer
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>    I went on an extended hunt for the specs on the
> >> Omega and turned up little besides equilibrium formulas.
> >> Resonance projection starts with a maple rim, it's the code.
> >> It's hard to comment without that much, and then I my
> >> travels I'm I will search one out.
> >>
> >>    I did see a picture of the lyre.  The base looks stout, however
> >> all lyres with
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>    ------------------------------
> >> *From:* Andrew Anderson <andrew at andersonmusic.com>
> >> *To:* Brent Fischer <brent.fischer at yahoo.com>
> >> *Sent:* Wednesday, August 1, 2012 8:50 PM
> >>
> >> *Subject:* Re: [CAUT] The demise of the American piano industry
> >>
> >> Interlined below
> >> On Aug 1, 2012, at 7:53 PM, Brent Fischer wrote:
> >>
> >> yes, I agree if NY would utilize Hamburg plates and a workforce that
> >> thought like Hamburg employees the conversation would be over.  It's
> >> important to quantify "quality construction " because there is simply
> >> no mistakes made in Steinway joinery, including boards and bridges.
> >>       Above all else, Steinway makes the only piano that doesn't blow
> >> up on "FFF",  and selective artists know the difference and the sound.
> >>
> >> Here is where I have the opposite experience.  Sauter Omegas are more
> >> powerful sonically and have a much broader dynamic range than any Steinway
> >> I've encountered, and that is the semi-concert grand.  Back to back on
> >> stage there is no doubt as to which is the more musical piano and that is
> >> how we shut Steinway out of institutional purchases. One Omega against one
> >> D: put them together and the difference is obvious.  Steinways distort at
> >> FFF, Sauters get louder.
> >>
> >> Now people do identify with that distortion and you can get a little from
> >> a Sauter, eventually, if you are brutal.  If you need to have it easily and
> >> can live with a smaller dynamic envelope, you should choose Steinway.
> >>   Again, personal preference should determine your choice here.  If you need
> >> to power up a hall though, the sound meter confirms what the ear hears:
> >> Sauters do FFF louder by wasting much less sonic energy on distortion.
> >>   They carry very well.
> >>
> >> The quality of the best Euro piano made is only designed to function
> >> musically up to and never above " FF ".  Mason and Hamlin has the
> >> tonal substructure to support tenacious pianists however when they
> >> designed hardened steel front duplex bars they compromised the treble tone.
> >>       Quality 101:
> >>           a.  No one but Steinway makes a lyre to withstand the rigors of
> >> Julliard
> >>
> >> Have you seen the Sauter lyre system?
> >>
> >>
> >>           b.  only Steinway uses quartered-sawn poplar in lid construction,
> >>                like a carbon-fiber bike frame; light and strong
> >> Andrew, the argument has to finish with which piano can withstand
> >> the rigors of a changing upswing in the strength of modern pianists,
> >> playing
> >> to crowds that come to hear " piano Olympics ".  Steinway sets the bar at
> >> "FFF" and
> >> you have the little F's following behind.
> >>     You wouldn't give Albert Pujols a plastic bat to hit a homer no more
> >> than you
> >> would give Lang Lang a Bosendorfor to play Lizt.
> >>
> >> Actually a lot of what Liszt wrote sounds really good on a Bosie.  I would
> >> tend to reserve a Bosie for music of a more Austrian style, Mozart, Haydn
> >> and some Beethovan.  There are any number of fine piano makes that are
> >> interesting in their own right and some might be preferred for certain
> >> types of music.  Steinway's aggressive (admirably successful) marketing has
> >> positioned it where it is dominant in venues here in North American but
> >> that dominance has many factors involved that aren't necessarily about
> >> music-making.
> >>
> >> YMMV,
> >> Andrew Anderson
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>    Sincerely,
> >>    Brent Fischer
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>    ------------------------------
> >> *From:* Andrew Anderson <andrew at andersonmusic.com>
> >> *To:* Brent Fischer <brent.fischer at yahoo.com>; caut at ptg.org
> >> *Sent:* Wednesday, August 1, 2012 5:22 PM
> >>
> >> *Subject:* Re: [CAUT] The demise of the American piano industry
> >>
> >> Mr. Fischer
> >> When you are dealing with fine pianos you will find that they are quite
> >> individual in their characteristics and the choice of a piano becomes a
> >> personal one of preference.  Teir-1 piano makers are not copying each other
> >> and don't have the same goals when it comes to sound and playing
> >> characteristics.
> >>
> >> If you are comparing quality and consistency of manufacture Steinway NY
> >> loses, hands down.  If the German can't get past union senority issues in
> >> NY, Steinway will completely undermine its iconic reputation--self
> >> destruct.  I, for one, hope it does get control of its QC issues.  It would
> >> be a shame to lose another American manufacturer.
> >>
> >> That said, I don't like any of the Steinways I work with.  They are
> >> getting better but they are all compromised instruments which will not be
> >> stellar until re-bellied they way they should be.  Quality control was
> >> definitely out to lunch on these Ds an Bs.
> >>
> >> In my store I carry a teir-one German brand and these pianos are obviously
> >> better then any NY Steinway I work on.  Every performing artist I've had
> >> over has fallen in-love with them, some of them under contractual
> >> obligation to demand another instrument at performance venues.
> >>
> >> Unless the only Steinways you encouter are C&A stock, you have missed out
> >> on a lot of other fine brands.
> >>
> >> As to Chinese made pianos, the strides being made there are rapid, much
> >> more rapid than the progress that was made by Japanese piano makers.  There
> >> is a least one brand coming out of China today that is very serious
> >> competition for the Japanese makes at their better levels.
> >>
> >> The world does not stand still.  Things do change over time.  Keeping
> >> track of that is an invaluable service.  I do disagree with Fine on
> >> occasion but as yet he has no credible competition for the service he
> >> provides and I do recommend his service to everyone who asks.
> >>
> >> Sincerely,
> >> Andrew Anderson
> >>
> >> On Aug 1, 2012, at 4:48 PM, Brent Fischer wrote:
> >>
> >> Mr. Bousel,
> >>     With all due respect Aaron I don't consider my opinion a minority one.
> >> Secondly, who made Mr. Fine's instrument acumen the " last word " or
> >> his analysis the " bible " of the industry.  As the last of the greatest
> >> American made pianos fade into the sunset there will be even the
> >> occasional Mason and Hamlin growing daises in  your local dump. The
> >> comparison that Fine makes with the Chinese industry would leave the
> >> laymen believing that they are just as well made as the original specs
> >> of pianos that were light years ahead of anything made in China.
> >>
> >>      It all starts with the carcass, just have to compare and contrast with
> >> specs that have been historically superior.  There has never been a
> >> foreign
> >> made piano anywhere that could hold it's own on stage with a Baldwin or
> >> Mason much less a Steinway. I don't categorize the Hamburg as foreign.
> >>
> >>      Final comment:  The last time I drove over Fine's book with my truck
> >> was when he made his biblical judgement that European instruments
> >> are as good as our currently US made Steinways.
> >> Like I said, he's not our spokesman.
> >>
> >>    ------------------------------
> >> *From:* Aaron Bousel <abousel at comcast.net>
> >> *To:* caut at ptg.org
> >> *Sent:* Wednesday, August 1, 2012 3:24 PM
> >> *Subject:* Re: [CAUT] The demise of the American piano industry
> >>
> >>   Here's a link to the whole article, including a video.
> >> http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/30/arts/music/for-more-pianos-last-note-is-thud-in-the-dump.html?pagewanted=all
> >>
> >> First: Larry is hardly responsible for the juxtaposition of his comment
> >> and the photo of an old Knabe grand.
> >> Second: You don't know the context of his remarks, that is, what question
> >> was asked by the reporter that elicited the quote that was used. In the
> >> context of 80 to 100+ year old verticals it certainly fits and his comment
> >> doesn't endorse the purchase of a digital piano, it just states the reality
> >> of the marketplace.
> >> Third: You've "always said" that Larry Fine doesn't know what he's talking
> >> about? OK, you're entitled to your opinion (albeit a minority one within
> >> the industry), but don't base it on one out of context quote from a
> >> newspaper article.
> >>
> >> Aaron
> >>
> >> At 07:25 AM 8/1/2012, you wrote:
> >>
> >> NY Times  7-30-12.....Music Article
> >>
> >>    On the front page of the digital NY Times  " For More Pianos, Last Note
> >> is the Thud in the Dump"
> >>
> >>   " Instead of spending hundreds or thousands to repair an old piano, you
> >> can buy a new one made in China that's just as good, or you can buy a
> >> digital
> >> one that doesn't need need tuning and has all kinds of bells and
> >> whistles," said
> >> Larry Fine, the editor and publisher of Acoustic & Digital Buyer " the
> >> industry bible.
> >>
> >> The picture seen around the world is of a vintage Knabe grand being
> >> trashed.
> >> Confirms what I've always said, he doesn't know what he is talking about.
> >>
> >> Brent Fischer
> >> 30 yr. member of the PTG / Registered Craftsman / retired
> >>
> >>
> >>   ------------------------------------------
> >> Aaron Bousel
> >> Registered Piano Technician, Piano Technicians Guild
> >>   info at bouselpiano.com
> >> (413) 253-3846 (voice & fax)
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 

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